The attitudes toward global risks among gamers playing different computer games

Abstract

Based on a review of studies on the effects of cinematographic images of global catastrophes on individual attitudes to climate change, it is concluded that they raise concerns about global risks, but may reduce the assessment of their likelihood. The psychological characteristics of computer games, the action of which takes place after a global catastrophe, are analyzed. It was supposed that the computer game culture maintains belief in the possibility of survival after a nuclear war, leads to an underestimation of the imaginary catastrophic consequences, the true reality of which is not available to the experience of living humanity. The results of three exploratory studies of gamers’ attitudes toward global risks (N = 547, N = 503, N = 291) are presented. It is shown that the experience of playing computer games is negatively related with anxiety about global risks and the value of humanity survival. Nevertheless, a comparison of the types of game preferences, we have identified, shows, that gamers playing post-apocalyptic games are characterized by higher concerns about global risks and social pessimism. They are more willing to participate in the prevention of global risks, but at the same time they are more inclined to believe that a global catastrophe can be survived if you prepare for it in advance. Respondents who do not play computer games, as well as gamers who prefer shooters and arcades, were most inclined to fatalistic ignoring global risks. At the same time, the same two groups had the highest fear of personal death. On the contrary, gamers, who prefer multiplayer online role-playing games, are more optimistic about the future of humanity, less inclined to ignore global risks and less prone to the fear of personal death, which may be due to their experience in creating successful alliances to solve complex task in games. Promising areas of research on the impact of computer games on the attitudes to global risks and prosocial attitudes are outlined.